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representation, so more women can smash the glass ceiling and fill senior roles in the media”. A number of measures were proposed, including recruiting more equality reps and providing reps with training, support and campaign resources to negotiate plans with employers and share experiences to create best practice models designed to combat discrimination in NUJ workplaces. Arjum Wajid, NEC member, said it was vital to strengthen the union’s network of equality reps, to train them and support their work. Te #MeToo movement has put


sexual harassment centre stage and Debbie Calvadoro, chair of the NUJ’s Equality Council, told DM: “Te tide is finally turning.” Natasha Burnal, of the magazines and books industrial council, said it was important that the union provided a safe space for women to bring their experience of sexism and harassment. She said the NEC must draw up a code of conduct for paid and lay officials to “create a climate that would eradicate sexual harassment” which could be adopted by chapels. Delegates heard that that lessons could be learned from the Stronger Voice for Women project in Scotland [htps:// www.nuj.org.uk/news/a-stronger- voice-for-women-in-the-media/] which has run a series of events to give women


Campaign for equal pay:


Stamp Out Sexism: plan of action


• Provide a safe platform for women, including freelances, to report sexism and harassment and offer them support.


• Call out examples of sexist reporting in the media.


• Push for greater diversity in newsrooms and encourage policies to promote more women to senior


editorial positions.


• Call on the Irish government to include sexual harassment as a protected disclosure under the Protect Disclosures Act 2014.


• Support initiatives such as the Stronger Voice for Women project and provide training in opportunities for women to develop confidence and assert their rights.


• Create a model code of conduct for paid


more confidence to stand up to sexism and make their voices heard. Annie Pike, of the union’s health and


safety commitee, said it was important to promote health and safety awareness so that reps knew how to put in place robust house agreements backed up with legislation to prevent harassment. Te motion said the union must hold the


press to account and challenge reporting which objectified women and focused on the way they looked, not what they said. DM passed a Photographers’ Council‘s motion which called upon the NEC to


action points • Encourage the use of equal pay surveys and secure greater transparency of reporting in organisations of all sizes, ensuring chapels can effectively hold companies to account.


• Provide reps with training, support and campaign resources to create best-practice


models designed to combat discrimination in NUJ workplaces.


• Work to encourage women’s and equality reps on all chapel commitees and secure NUJ representation on any company-initiated networks set up to address gender pay.


• Encourage reps to negotiate more transparent recruitment practices and encourage companies’ commitments


and lay officials and officers.


• Support #MeToo and other campaigns which expose sexual abuse in the media.


consider ways it could support women photographers; the photography sector was one of the most gender-unbalanced sectors of the union, with only 17 per cent being women. Natasha Hirst, a photographer and member of the NEC, said that among photographers in their mid-50s, 90 per cent were men. She said: “Stories need to be told from all perspectives – not just men’s. We need to encourage more women activists to take up roles on the union’s decision-making bodies to make the issue of of women photographers a priority.”


to unconscious bias training.


• Negotiate improved family- friendly policies, job sharing, commitments to flexible working and practical measures to achieve work- life balance.


• Campaign to end forced freelancing which is an unwelcome outcome for many women returning from maternity leave.


• Tackle pernicious inequality, and work with


the NUJ’s parliamentary group, the TUC and the ICTU to extend the provisions of the currently limited gender pay gap regulations.


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